Harrisburg Council appeals bankruptcy decision

The attorney for Harrisburg City Council says he has filed an appeal of a judge's decision to throw out the bankruptcy petition of Pennsylvania's debt-choked capital city.

Mark Schwartz says in an email the appeal was filed Saturday with the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania.

Last month, federal bankruptcy Judge Mary France ruled Harrisburg may not seek bankruptcy protection, calling such a filing illegal. That ruling cleared the way for the state to take over the city.

Schwartz says he feels the decision "was in error" and that the case could end up in the U.S. Supreme Court.

Harrisburg is saddled with about $300 million in debt tied to its nearly 40-year-old trash incinerator. Beset by environmental problems and fines for years, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency shut it down in 2003 with about $100 million in debt already piled on it, some of which had gone to finance other city projects.